Let’s talk about reading.  Not the reading of specific books.  At least not right now.  But how reading fits into our lives.

I have said previously that I don’t make New Year’s resolutions.  That is true; but, I do set a few goals for myself with the arrival of each new year.  For 2025, I set an intention to read one hundred books.  Last January, this seemed like an easily attainable goal; two books a week with some built in wiggle room for busier times.  No problem.  

I did not reach that goal…unless you count all of the children’s books I read to my grandsons.   I think I was nine or ten books shy of one hundred.  Though I am somewhat shocked at my shortfall, after thinking about how and why I missed my mark, I am not disappointed in myself at all.

Here is the number one reason that I did not reach the century mark in 2025.

I AM NOT A MULTI-TASKER!!!  

Not with reading and not with anything else.  I do one thing at a time.  Period.  The end.

I know many people who have upped their book consumption by listening to audio books while they drive, clean, cook, exercise, knit, etc.  I am a visual learner.  I need to see the words in order to make meaning from them so I don’t do well at all with audio books.  I don’t even do well with them when my only task is listening.  Audio books are not a viable option for me.  This is my sad reality.  And because cooking and cleaning  and my real grown-up job have to be done, my inability to multitask diminishes my book time.

That said, on a rare occasion, I have listened to some non-fiction fluff essays while on the treadmill. This worked because the essays were short, entertaining, and I did not have to remember any details.  If you are interested, the essays were by the mother-daughter team Lisa Scottoline and Francesca Serritella.  They are funny, poignant, thought-provoking, tear-jerking, and oh so relatable.  I need for them to write a more books to get me through a few more miles.

Back to my book-century that was a decade short…

When I read, I read and I do nothing else.  This means that I tend to binge read.  I’ll do nothing for an entire day except finish a book. Then I’ll have to play catch-up for the next couple days.  “Everything in moderation” doesn’t work at all for me.  I’m more of an “all or nothing” kind of girl.  

I have discovered the upside of not being a multitasker  What I lacked in quantity, I made up for in quality.  I enjoyed and learned something  from everything that I read in 2025.  And by being fully present to all of the words, which allowed them to sink more deeply into my mind and heart, I encountered some odd connections between the books to each other and to my life.  In the big scheme of things, isn’t that what reading is all about?

In 2026, my goal is again to read one hundred books.  I may reach that goal.  I may not.  That’s OK.  If I come to the end of this year feeling as connected to each book as I did in 2025, all will be well.

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Here are a few questions about reading habits.  If you’d like to play along, feel free to share some or all of your responses in the comments section.

• Do you set a yearly reading goal?  If so, how many books do you hope to read in 2026?
• Do you prefer print, digital, audio, or a combination of some or all?
• Are you a multi-tasker when it comes to reading?
• What is/are your favorite genre(s)?

Now the hard questions:

• What was your favorite book of 2025?
• What is your all-time favorite book?

Happy reading!